During normal engine operation, the cooling system continually circulates liquid throughout the engine for cooling purposes. During circulation, air may be introduced into the cooling system which lowers cooling effectiveness and may cause subsequent damage to cooling system pumps or internal components. For this reason, most heat exchangers for use with internal combustion engines include a method for venting in order to allow the air that has entered the cooling system to be evacuated. A percentage of the air/cooling liquid mixture contained in the heat exchanger is communicated to a surge tank. The cooling liquid is circulated through the surge tank and into the internal combustion engine while the air is vented through an opening in the surge tank. Various venting methods have been used to evacuate the air from the cooling system.
Most venting methods involve utilization of a connector assembly which is securely fastened to the heat exchanger to communicate between the heat exchanger and the separate surge tank. Generally, the connector assembly includes a member which is snapped into an opening within a tank portion of the heat exchanger. The member has a pair of tabs which serve to hold the member in place within the opening and an inner threaded portion. A tapered body including an integral nut has an outer threaded portion which is threaded into the inner threaded portion until the connector assembly is securely fastened on the heat exchanger. The tapered body has a bore therein allowing a specific amount of air and cooling liquid to communicate from the heat exchanger to the surge tank. The air communicated from the heat exchanger is released from the surge tank through an opening therein and the cooling liquid is recirculated through the cooling system. The design of the connector assembly is complicated, and unfortunately, the bore within the tapered body is located on the smallest portion of the tapered body so that the bore has a diameter less than 4 mm. The small bore size does not allow an adequate amount of air to leave the cooling system of most engines. The inability to remove the air from the cooling system leads to the ultimate destruction of the cooling system pump or other internal components. Therefore, the connector assembly must be replaced to allow proper venting.
The present invention is directed to overcoming the problems as set forth above.